Button based video database interface

ABSTRACT

The described embodiments of the present invention provide a video database client application configured to execute on a wireless communication device or a device with a small display screen. The video database client application includes a user interface including user interface components designed to access video information and view videos using the wireless communication device. The video database client application includes a video player module to integrate and control a native video player within the user interface. The video database client application further includes a video database interface module adapted to retrieve videos and video information from the video database. The video database interface module functions to pre-fetch information from the video database based on anticipated user information needs.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

This invention relates to client software for wireless communicationdevices. Specifically, the invention relates to software that providesan interface for accessing and displaying information from a videodatabase using a wireless communication device.

2. Background

Due to advancement in wireless communication device technology, wirelessdevices have become an increasingly prevalent substitute for personalcomputers. Wireless devices include, for example, cellular telephones,pagers, “palmtop” personal information managers (PIMS), and other small,primarily handheld communication and computing devices. Wirelesscommunication devices have matured considerably in their features andare now used alternately with computers for more advanced communicationsfunctions, such as electronic mail, facsimile receipt and transmission,Internet access, browsing the World Wide Web, and the like.

In addition to communications related functions, wireless communicationsdevices are also commonly used as personal entertainment devices in thesame way the computers are currently used. Wireless devices are commonlyused to play music, watch videos, play video games etc. However,wireless communication devices present a variety of more challengingdesign and implementation issues that do not arise with largerprocessor-based systems, such as notebook and desktop computers, whichmay also have similar telecommunication features. These designchallenges include the design of the user interfaces and the integrationof Internet and World Wide Web access with other communicationfunctionality.

One constraint in the design of the user interfaces for wireless devicesis the limited size of the display screen of the wireless device. Unlikedesktop and notebook computers, wireless communication devices have aform factor that requires a very small screen display size. Desktopcomputers typically have displays with at least 14″ screen size, andresolution typically between 800×600 and 1280×1024 pixels. In contrast,wireless communication devices typically have a screen size between25×25 mm and 80×120 mm, and resolutions between 176×144 to 240×320pixels, or about 5% of the size of the desktop or notebook screen. As adirect result, the user interface design of the wireless communicationdevice must provide access to essentially the same features as desktopcomputers, such as Web browsing, yet with only a fraction of the screenarea for displaying text, images, icons, and the like. This problem ofconstructing the user interface to provide these features isparticularly significant when handling Web-based content, sinceconventional Web content is frequently designed for presentation on thelarger screen size of conventional desktop computers.

The severely restricted set of inputs available to user provides anotherconstraint in the design of user interfaces for wireless communicationdevices. Conventional desktop or notebook computers have cursor-basedpointing devices, such as a computer mouse, trackballs, joysticks, andthe like, as well as a full-sized keyboard. This enables navigation ofthe Web content by clicking and dragging of scroll bars, clicking ofhypertext links, and keyboard tabbing between fields of forms, such asHTML forms. In contrast, wireless communication devices have a verylimited number of inputs, typically up and down keys, and one to threesoft keys.

For websites that aim to provide the user with the ability to browse alarge amount of information, such as video content distributionwebsites, the above constraints severely limit both the amount ofinformation presented to the user and the ease with which the user canbrowse the information.

FIG. 1 illustrates a conventional video database interface designed fora mobile device. Due to limited screen space, only a subset of videoinformation may be displayed at one time. The video information isdisplayed in a list format in order to facilitate user selection ofvideos using the up and down keys of the wireless communication device.In order to view additional or different video information, the usermust select the next button. Upon this selection, the user must wait forthe next set of video information to load onto the screen. Depending onthe speed at which the wireless communication device can retrieve andprocess video information from the video database server, it may takeseveral seconds to load the next set of video information.

At the bottom of the screen, a menu of the video database functions islisted in association with the different number keys. Navigation of thevideo database by highlighting and selecting the menu options or byusing the number keys is cumbersome as the user is required to selectfrom the entire menu of options. Further, the display of the entire menuof options takes up significant screen space and is difficult to readdue to the large number of menu options displayed.

SUMMARY

The described embodiments of the present invention provides a videodatabase client application configured to execute on a wirelesscommunication device or a device with a small display screen. The videodatabase client application includes a user interface including userinterface components designed to access video information and viewvideos using the wireless communication device. These user interfacecomponents include buttons to display menu options and accountinformation to users. Other user interface components include a carouseldisplay to interactively browse information associated with videos.These user-interface components facilitate browsing and navigation ofthe video database using the small screen display of the wirelesscommunication device.

The video database client application includes a video player module tointegrate and control a native video player within the user interface.The incorporation of a native video player within the interfacefacilitates user control of the video player. Control of the videoplayer through the interface provided by the video database clientapplication further enables the video database client application tomonitor video viewing data and store this information in the videodatabase.

The video database client application further includes a video databaseinterface module adapted to retrieve videos and video information fromthe video database. The video database interface module functions topre-fetch information from the video database based on anticipated userinformation needs. The video database interface module pre-fetches videoinformation to allow the user to interactively and continuously browselarge sets of videos using the carousel display without the user havingto explicitly request and wait for new video information to be retrievedfrom the video database. The video database interface module alsopre-fetches video information regarding videos that are related to avideo the user has selected to view. The video database interface modulefurther pre-fetches user account information such as playlists the userhas created or videos that have been sent to the user. By pre-fetchinginformation based on anticipated user needs, the video database clientapplication compensates for slow retrieval of information through awireless network minimizing time delays in providing video informationto users.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an illustration of a conventional video database interface fordesigned for a mobile device.

FIG. 2 is an illustration of the top level software and systemarchitecture of a wireless communication device in one embodiment of thepresent invention.

FIG. 3 shows a video database home page 200 according to one embodimentof the video database client application 102.

FIG. 4 shows a video database home page 200 according to one embodimentof the video database client application 102.

FIG. 5 shows a video database home page 200 according to one embodimentof the video database client application 102.

FIG. 6 shows a most-viewed page 500 according to one embodiment of thevideo database client application 102.

FIG. 7 shows a user account page 600 according to one embodiment of thevideo database client application 102.

FIG. 8 shows a user account page 600 according to one embodiment of thevideo database client application 102.

FIG. 9 shows a user account page 600 according to one embodiment of thevideo database client application 102.

FIG. 10 shows a video viewing page 1000 according to one embodiment ofthe video database client application 102.

FIG. 11 shows a video viewing page 1000 according to one embodiment ofthe video database client application 102.

FIG. 12 illustrates a high-level block diagram of a wirelesscommunication environment adapted to execute the video database clientapplication 102 according to one embodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIG. 2, there is shown an illustration of the systemand software architecture of a wireless communication device 100configured to execute a video database client application 102 inaccordance with an embodiment of the present invention. The hardware ofthe wireless communication device 100 includes a processor 124, memory126, screen display 136, and keypad 128. Memory 126 includes ROM, RAM,and a flash memory for long term storage of data. A suitable wirelesscommunication device 100 for providing the hardware features is a NokiaN series phone manufactured by Nokia Telecommunications, Inc.

The wireless communication device 100 stores in the memory 126 andexecutes a conventional real time operating system 122, which includesmodules for managing power, memory, threads (communication connections),keypad inputs, and timer activities. The real time operating system 122provides a standard application programming interface allowing higherlevel components of a video database client application 102 to requestfunctionality of the wireless communication device 100, and to send andreceive data.

Also stored in the memory 126 and in communication with the real timeoperating system 122 is telephony control module 120 that provides theprimary telephone controls, including making and receiving telephonecalls, managing multiple telephone lines (if appropriate), management oftext messaging (if appropriate), monitoring of telephone signals, andother basic telephony functions. The telephony control module 120includes a conventional telephone protocol stack that implements anair-interface protocol. The telephony control module 120 and the realtime operating system 122 are typically provided by the manufacturer ofthe wireless communication device 100, and their particularimplementation is not material here.

The screen display 136 is a bitmapped LCD or similar display device. Thescreen display 136 is typically of very limited resolution, for exampleabout 90×60 to 240×320 pixels (at about .28 mm dot pitch) as would beappropriate for a compact, portable, hand-held electronic device. It isanticipated that advances in display technology will result in screendisplays 136 of significantly higher resolution, but even so, theergonomic and form factor requirements of wireless communication deviceswill result in screen displays that are relatively small (e.g., between25×25 mm and 80×120 mm) as compared to the screen displays of notebookand desktop computers, and as a result will not display content designedfor such larger screen displays in the exactly the same manner. Thepresent invention is adapted to increase the ease of use of such screendisplays when displaying video database content. In some embodiments,the screen display 136 is a touch screen. Touch screens are screendisplays 136 which are sensitive to human touch and allow the user toenter inputs by touching the screen, either with a finger or a pointingdevice.

The wireless communication device 100 has a keypad 128 that includes anumber of fixed function keys 132 for accessing defined functions of thewireless communication device 100 (e.g., “Send,” “End,” and “Power”),number keys 134 for entering digits (and if suitably encoded, forentering other characters), and programmable soft keys 130. Soft keys130 are buttons that have variable functionality that changes dependingon the particular screen display of the video database clientapplication 102 being shown.

The wireless communication device 100 stores in its memory 126 andexecutes an instance of a video database client application 102 made inaccordance with the present invention. This video database clientapplication 102 includes: a navigator 107, a set of user interfacecomponents 116, a video player module 140, a video database interfacemodule 145 and a user interface layer 118. The navigator 107 providesthe primary user interface mechanism to the user, allowing access touser interface components 116 and through them to features of theapplication. The user interface components 116 provide a set of graphicsprimitives, file store functions, data elements and localizationfeatures that allow the application 102 to be used on a variety ofwireless communication devices 100. The user interface layer 118provides an interface for the navigator 107 and user interfacecomponents 116 to the real time operating system 122 and the telephonecontrol module 120.

The video database client application 102 executes as a multi-threadedapplication, and is generally designed to run on any real time operatingsystem 122, telephone control module 120, and wireless communicationdevice 100 that provides sufficient ROM, RAM, and flash memory, a screendisplay 136, and basic services.

The navigator 107 provides the basic user interface of the videodatabase client application 102 and displays user interface components116 used to access and browse the video database 147 on the screendisplay 136 of the wireless communication device 100. The video contentdisplayed by the navigator 107 is retrieved by the video databaseinterface module 145 from a video database 147.

The navigator 107 includes a video player module 140 which integratesand controls a native video player 149 within the navigator 107. Anative video player 149 is a software application which plays videos andthat is native to the wireless communication device 100. The nativevideo player 149 is usually associated with the real time operatingsystem 122 of the wireless communication device 100. According to thetype of wireless communication device 100, different native videoplayers 149 specific to the wireless communication device 100 may beprovided. Example native video players 149 include: RealPlayer®, WindowsMedia Player and QuickTime Video Player.

The video player module 140 identifies the native video player 149 ofthe wireless communication device 100. The video player module 140interacts with user interface components 116 to control the display andinteraction with the native video player 149 within the navigator 107.The video player module 140 further transmits information obtained fromthe user interaction with the native video player 149 to the videodatabase interface module 145. The video database interface module 145stores user interaction information in the video database 147.

The navigator 107 further includes a video database interface module145. The video database interface module 145 provides an interfacebetween the navigator 107 and a video database 147. The video databaseinterface module 145 retrieves videos and video information from thevideo database 147 responsive to user selection of user interfacecomponents 116. The video database interface module 145 also retrievesvideos and video information from the video database based onanticipated user information needs. The video database interface module145 pre-fetches packets of video information containing information forplurality of videos. In some embodiments, the video database interfacemodule 145 communicates directly with the video database 147. In someembodiments, the video database interface module 145 is adapted tocommunicate with an application programming interface (API) for a videodatabase 147.

The video database 147 stores videos and video information. The videodatabase 147 can be any database of videos which resides on a server.The video database 147 stores videos in a format compatible with nativevideo player 149. The video database 147 also includes information aboutthe videos such as, for example, length, name and source of the videos.The video database 147 further includes annotations of the videos basedon information such as: user ratings, genre or type of the videos,frequency at which the videos are viewed and other videos that arerelated to the videos. The video database 147 stores informationspecific to users of the video database 147 such as: videos selected bythe users, videos sent to the users, videos watched by the users,ratings submitted by the users, user subscriptions to video playlists orvideo providers, demographic information regarding the users andselected preferences of type of genre of videos selected by the users.

FIG. 12 illustrates a high-level block diagram of a wirelesscommunication environment 1200 adapted to execute the video clientapplication 102 according to one embodiment. One or more wirelesscommunication devices 100 execute the video database client application102. Upon execution of the video database client application 102, thevideo database interface module 145 sends and retrieves videos and videoinformation from the video database 147 over a wirelesstelecommunications network 1210.

The wireless telecommunications network 1210 may be any type of wirelessnetwork such as a wireless local area network. In a specific embodiment,the wireless telecommunications network 1210 is a mobile device networksuch as a Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) network. In oneembodiment, the wireless telecommunications network 1210 uses standardcommunications technologies and/or protocols. The videos and videoinformation exchanged over the wireless telecommunications network 1210can be represented using technologies and/or formats including thehypertext markup language (HTML), the extensible markup language (XML),etc. In addition, all or some of videos and video information can beencrypted using conventional encryption technologies. In anotherembodiment, the entities can use custom and/or dedicated wirelesscommunications technologies instead of, or in addition to, the onesdescribed above.

Following the terminology of the World Wide Web, an individual userinterface screen of the video database client application 102 is hereincalled a “page.” Referring now to FIG. 3, there is shown a basic layoutof a video database home page 200 displayed on the screen display 136 bythe navigator 107. Each video database home page 200 generally has fourbasic areas: a navigation bar 203, a video display area 205, a buttonarea 210 and a soft key area 215. The navigation bar 203, in oneembodiment, remains present and displays the name associated with aparticular page of the video database client application 102.Accordingly, in the video database home page 200 the navigation bar 203indicates that the screen displayed is the “Home” page.

A video information display area 205 either displays video relatedinformation or an indicator that the video information is loading orbeing retrieved from the video database 147 by the video databaseinterface module 145.

The video database home page 200 contains a button area 210 forreceiving user input. Using the keypad 128 on the telephone, the usercan scroll to select the one or more buttons in the button area 210 tonavigate to different screens or be presented with other menu options orselect the video that is displayed in the video information display areafor viewing. If the wireless communication device 100 has a touchscreen, the user can select buttons within the button area by touchingthe buttons. In one embodiment, in order for the button area 210 to havea minimal number of buttons (e.g. 3, 4 or 5 buttons) that take up amaximum amount of space in the button 210 area and to facilitate easyreading of the menu options and selection of the buttons, the buttonstake up a majority (e.g., up to approximately 90-95%) of the width ofthe screen 136. Other embodiments have more or fewer buttons of varyingsizes.

In the embodiment illustrated, the button area 210 contains a searchbutton 220, a popular videos button 230 and a user account button 240,each button labeled according to its title. The search button 220enables the user to enter textual search queries to search the videodatabase 147. Upon selection of the search button 220, the user ispresented with a text entry screen that can be used to enter searchqueries. In a specific embodiment, the text entry screen is a pop-upscreen which comprises a majority (up to approximately 90-95%) of thescreen display.

The popular videos button 230 enables the user to view information forvideos in the video database 147 that are frequently accessed or highlyrated. Upon selection of the popular videos button 230, the user mayeither be presented with a set of popular videos retrieved from thevideo database 147 or presented with a subsequent screen to furtherselect a criterion of popularity. This screen is discussed in detailbelow with respect to FIG. 5.

The “my account” button 240 allows the user to access information storedin association with the user's account in the video database 147. Uponselecting the user account button 240, the user can login to theiraccount. If the user has previously selected to automatically login,upon selecting the user account button 240 the user will be presentedwith an account screen that lists menu options specific to the user'saccount settings. This screen is discussed in detail below with respectto FIG. 7.

The soft key area 215 displays menu options and functions that can beselected using soft keys 130. The menu options and functions associatedwith the soft keys 130 are dependant on the page or screen of the videodatabase client application 102. In the video database home page 200, amenu key 250 can be selected to display a menu of options that the usermay navigate and make selections from using the up and down keys. In aspecific embodiment, the menu of options is a pop up menu listing a setof options including the ability to search the database, navigate toother pages in the video database client application 102, view relatedvideos to the video for which video information is currently displayed,upload videos or flag videos for inappropriate content.

FIG. 4 shows a video database home page 200 according to one embodiment.In the embodiment illustrated, the video information display area 205displays video information from the video database 147.

The video information display area 205 displays video information for afeatured video 305 in the video database 147. In alternate embodiments,the video information display area 205 of the video database home page200 can display information for videos selected based on the user'saccount settings. For example, the video information display area 205can display information for videos recommended for the user or videoinformation for unwatched videos sent to the user's account.

The video information display area 205 displays video informationretrieved by the video database interface module 145 from the videodatabase 147. Typical information displayed in the video informationdisplay area 205 includes images from the video, the title of the video,ratings for the video, length of the video, genre of the video, thesource of the video and the popularity/ratings of the video. In theembodiment illustrated in FIG. 3, the video information display area 205displays information including the “source” or user who submit the video340, the number of views of the video 350, an image or frame of thevideo 330, an overall rating for the video 360, the number of ratingsused to determine the overall rating 370, the title of the video 355 andcomments or text describing the video 380.

FIG. 5 shows a screen of a video database home page 200 in which thepopular videos button 230 has been selected according to one embodiment.Upon selection of the popular windows button 230, a popular videoswindow 400 is displayed. In the embodiment illustrated, the popularvideos window 400 is a pop-up window which is displayed overtop of thevideo database home page 200. In alternate embodiments, the popularvideos window 400 may be presented as a separate page on screen 136. Thepopular videos window 400 contains additional buttons which listdifferent selection criteria for popular videos. The soft keys 130 inthe soft key area 215 allow the user to select 402 an option or cancel404 the popular videos window 400 to return to the video database homepage 200. Selection criteria for popular videos may include the numberof views of a video, the rating of a video or videos which have beenpre-selected by the video database 147 administrators such as featuredvideos. In the embodiment illustrated in FIG. 4, the popular videoswindow 400 includes a most viewed button 410, a top rated button 411 anda recently featured button 412. When selected, the most viewed button410 directs the user to a most viewed page 500 which displays the mostfrequently viewed videos. Accordingly, when the top rated button 411 isselected, the user is directed to a top rated page which displays thevideos with the top overall user ratings. The recently featured button412 directs the user to videos recently selected as feature videos bythe video database 147 administrator. In some embodiments, the featuredvideos are automatically selected by the video database clientapplication 102.

FIG. 6 shows a most viewed page 500 of the video database clientapplication 102 according to one embodiment. The most viewed page 500displays the videos in the video database that are most frequentlyviewed by the users of the video database. The most viewed page 500includes a video information display area 205, a navigation bar 203, asoft key area 215 and a carousel display 502. The navigation bar 203displays an indicator 503 that the page is the most viewed page 500.

The most viewed page 500 is representative of a page that the videodatabase client application 102 uses to interactively display any set ofvideos such as: a set of featured videos, a set of top rated videos, aset of recently featured videos, a set of favorite videos or a set ofvideos retrieved responsive to a search query. In the most viewed page500, the carousel display 502 displays a set of images representing asubset of the most viewed videos. In one embodiment, a maximum of 5images is shown at once. In one embodiment, these images are thumbnailsfrom the videos. In other embodiments, they are small versions of thevideos themselves. In the center of the carousel display 502, a selectedimage 511 is enlarged relative to the other images in the carouseldisplay 502. In one embodiment, the selected image is at least 1.5 timeslarger than the other images displayed in the carousel display 502.

Information for the video associated with the selected image 511 isdisplayed in the video information display area 205. The videoinformation display area 205 can include any information for the videoassociated with the selected image 511. In the embodiment illustrated,the video information display area 205 includes the length 506 of thevideo associated with the selected image 511 in minutes and seconds. Thenavigation bar 203 additionally shows an indicator 504 which displaysthe a number of videos associated with the selected image 511 relativeto the number of videos contained in the set of most popular videos. Inthe embodiment illustrated, the video is indicated as being the firstvideo in a set of 63 most popular videos.

The carousel display 502 includes a control key 510 which allows theuser to navigate through the entire set of popular videos and selectimages for which to display video information. Responsive to selectionof the control key 510, the images in the carousel display 502 areshifted to the left and the rightmost image is replaced with a newimage. When the images are shifted, the image to the right of theselected image 511 becomes the selected image 511 and is enlarged.Information for the video associated with the newly selected image 511is displayed in the video information display area 205. When the userhas scrolled past a number of images greater than the number of imagesin the carousel display (e.g. 5), the carousel display 502 includes acontrol key which allows the user to shift the images to the right andselect the image left of the selected image 511. To continue to viewimages and information for all of the videos in the set of most popularvideos, the user can continue to press the control keys to scrollthrough the video information.

The video database interface module 145 is adapted to interface with thecontrol key 510 in order to retrieve video information and images fromthe video database 147. Responsive to selection of the control keys 510,the video database interface module 145 pre-fetches packets of imagesand video information for a plurality of the most popular videos.Pre-fetching images and information in packets allows the user to scrollthrough the most popular videos without having to wait for videoinformation and images to be retrieved over the wireless network. Thenumber of videos for which information and images are pre-fetched ineach packet is adjustable either automatically or via a preferencesetting in the client application or at the server to accommodate thespeed at which the information can be retrieved without causing delays.In some embodiments, packets include information and images from 5-10videos. Providing pre-fetched video information on a carousel display502 obviates the need for a user to load and scroll through a series ofimages in a time-consuming manner.

The soft key area 215 of the most viewed page 500 includes a home key509 the user may select to navigate to the video database home page 200.The soft key area 215 of the most viewed page 500 further includes aplay key 507 which the user may select to watch the video associatedwith the selected image 511. Upon selection of the play key 507, theuser is redirected to a video viewing page 1001 (FIG. 10) to watch thevideo associated with the selected image 511.

FIG. 7 shows a user account page 600 according to one embodiment of thevideo database client application 102. The user account page 600presents the user with a set of options based on information from userinteractions with the video database 147. User interactions with thevideo database 147 may include user selection of account settings thatdefine personal information and preferences for the user, videos theuser has viewed, videos the user has rated, videos the user hasuploaded, videos the user has received, and video playlists andsubscriptions the user has specified. In one embodiment, the user cancustomize the available features displayed on the user account page.

The user account page 600 includes a navigation bar 203, a buttondisplay area 210 and a soft key area 215. The navigation bar 203 of theuser account page displays the account name of the user that iscurrently logged in.

In the embodiment shown, the user account page 600 contains a buttondisplay area 210 which comprises the majority (up to approximately90-95%) of the screen. The button display area 210 contains 5 buttonsthat provide the user with options based on the user's interactions withthe database. The button display area 210 includes a favorites button602, a playlists button 604, a subscriptions button 606, a my videosbutton 608, and a received videos button 610. The video databaseinterface module 145 retrieves and lists information from the user'saccount from the video database 147 within the buttons.

Responsive to selection of the favorites button 602, the user ispresented with a set of videos that the user has either specified asfavorites and/or a set of videos that are frequently viewed by the user.The user can specify account settings (e.g. favorite videos, playlists,subscriptions) by accessing their account in the video database 147using the video database client application 102 on a wirelesscommunications device 100. In one embodiment, the user can also accesstheir account in the video database 147 using an internet browser on apersonal computer. In a specific embodiment, the set of favorite videosis displayed using a carousel display 502 in an interface similar tothat of the most viewed page 500.

The video database interface module 145 retrieves the number ofplaylists the user has created or added to their account and lists thisnumber within the playlists button 604. A playlist is a set of videosthe user has designated to be played together in a specified order. Uponselection of the playlists button 604, the user is presented with aselection of playlists they have created or added to their account. In aspecific embodiment, the user is presented with the playlists window 800illustrated in FIG. 8. In the embodiment illustrated, the playlistswindow 800 is a pop-up window, which is displayed as an overlay on topof the user account page 600. In alternate embodiments, the playlistswindow 800 may be presented as a separate page on screen 136. The usermay use the up and down keys to scroll in conjunction with the selectkey 402 in the soft keys area 215 to select a playlist from the playlistwindow 800.

The video database interface module 145 retrieves and lists the numberof subscriptions the user has created within their account within thesubscriptions button 606. Upon selection of the subscriptions button606, the user is presented with a selection of their subscriptions. In aspecific embodiment, the user is presented with subscriptions popupwindow 900 illustrated in FIG. 9. The user can then use the up and downkeys or touch screen in conjunction with the select key 402 in the softkeys area 215 to select a subscription from the subscriptions window900.

Responsive to selection of the my videos button 602, the user ispresented with a set of videos that the user has uploaded to the videodatabase 147. In some embodiments, the video database client application102 scans the memory of the wireless communication device 100 for videosand presents this set of videos to the user for uploading to the videodatabase 147. According to the embodiment, this scan may be specificallyrequested by the user through the use of a menu option or may beautomatically performed responsive to the user accessing the videodatabase client application 102. In a specific embodiment, the set ofvideos the user has uploaded is displayed using a carousel display 502in the interface discussed above in reference to the most viewed page500.

Responsive to selection of the favorites button 602, the user ispresented with a set of videos that the user has either specified asfavorites and/or a set of videos that are frequently viewed by the user.In a specific embodiment, the set of favorite videos is displayed usinga carousel display 502 in the interface discussed above in reference tothe most viewed page 500.

FIG. 10 depicts a screen shot of a video viewing page 1000 of the videodatabase client application 102 according to one embodiment. The videoviewing page 1000 includes a navigation bar 203, a video player area1001, a video information display area 205 and a soft key area 215.

The navigation bar 203 displays the name of the video currently viewedin the video viewing page 1000. The video player area 1001 includes avideo viewing area 1012 and user interface components 116 forcontrolling the native video player 149. The video player module 140integrates the native video player 149 in the video viewing area 1012.The video player module 140 interacts with the native video player 149and the user interface components 116 in order to control the nativevideo player 149.

Different user interface components 116 for controlling the native videoplayer 149 may be included in the video viewing page 1000. In theembodiment illustrated, the video viewing page 1000 includes a playbutton 1020 used to play or pause the video. The video viewing page 1000further includes a graphic control element including a slider used todisplay and select the time point of the video currently viewed 1018.The video viewing page 1000 further includes a time display element 1014which displays the time point of the video currently viewed as well asthe length of the video in minutes and seconds. The video viewing page1000 further includes a sound control element 1018 that displays thevolume of the video being viewed.

The video information display area 205 displays information regardingthe video being viewed. In the embodiment illustrated, the videoinformation display area 205 includes a composite rating of the video,the number of ratings used to determine the composite rating, the sourceof the video and the number of times the video has been viewed. The softkey area 215 includes a back button 1022 which redirects the user to thepage from which the video has been selected.

FIG. 11 depicts a screen shot of a video viewing page 1000 of the videodatabase client application 102 according to one embodiment. In thisembodiment, the video information display area 205 is used to display amenu option to view videos that are related to the video currentlyviewed in the video viewing page 1000. Responsive to selection of acontrol to view the video in the video viewing page, the video databaseinterface module 145 pre-fetches a set of video information for videosthat are related to the video being viewed in the video viewing page1000 from the video database 149. Videos that are related to the videobeing viewed may be selected based on criteria such as the source of thevideo, the genre of the video, the title of the video and any other typeof annotation associated with the video. In some embodiments, the usermay specify one or more of the criteria for related videos in theiraccount. Upon selection of the menu option to display the set of relatedvideos, the user is presented with the retrieved video information. Inone embodiment, the retrieved video information is presented in ainterface including a carousel display 502 similar to the interfacedescribed in reference to the most viewed page 500.

The above description is included to illustrate the operation of certainembodiments and is not meant to limit the scope of the invention. Thescope of the invention is to be limited only by the following claims.From the above discussion, many variations will be apparent to oneskilled in the relevant art that would yet be encompassed by the spiritand scope of the invention.

1. A method for displaying video content on a wireless communicationdevice, the method comprising: retrieving, by a client applicationexecuted on the wireless communication device, video information from avideo server over a network, the video information describing videocontent available from the video server; displaying the retrieved videoinformation in a first portion of a display device of the wirelesscommunication device, the first portion having a displayed width ofsubstantially the entire display; and displaying user interface controlsin a second portion of the display device, at least one of the displayeduser interface controls having a displayed width of substantially theentire display.
 2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first portion andthe second portion occupy a majority of the display screen.
 3. Themethod of claim 2, wherein the first portion is above the secondportion.
 4. The method of claim 2, wherein the user interface controlsinclude a control for entering a search query to be executed on thevideo server.
 5. A video database application comprising: a videoinformation display area comprising an image associated with a video andinformation for the video; and a button area adjacent to the videoinformation display area comprising a plurality of buttons, wherein eachbutton navigates to a different screen of the video database applicationand at least a first button navigates to a screen which allows a user toenter a search query to the video database.